Gas-powered devices are well-known. Some require an external gas supply, e.g., pneumatic jackhammers. Others carry their own gas supplies, usually in the form of a pressurized gas container. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 152,758 filed May 23, 1980 and now U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,277 by David T. Green for Self-Contained Gas Powered Surgical Stapler and assigned to U.S. Surgical Corporation.
The danger of explosion of pressurized gas containers exists whenever they are heated, accidentally or on purpose. For example, disposal of devices having pressurized gas containers (e.g., toys, hand tools) poses a problem because a common method of disposal is incineration, where the temperatures may reach 500.degree. C. or more. Although containers could be constructed to withstand the resulting extreme pressures, the substantial increase in their cost makes that solution unattractive. In the case of gas-powered medical devices, which may be sterilized in an ethylene oxide atmosphere at temperatures of up to 60.degree. to 65.degree. C., pressurized gas containers in such devices which are so sterilized must be stable at those temperatures and yet relieve any over-pressure conditions caused by higher temperatures. Accordingly, a low-cost reliable way of relieving over-pressure conditions in this type of container is needed.